Having now confirmed Douglas Luiz’s departure for Juventus, Aston Villa have a crucial decision ahead as to how to replace our influential midfielder.
As per the club’s official statement, the 26-year-old has now moved on to begin a new chapter in his career, and having left his mark at Villa, as well as a significant void that must now be filled, it’s imperative that the club’s management team get their choice right.
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Luiz made 204 appearances in his five years with Villa, scoring 22 goals and providing 24 assists in those outings, as he firmly established himself as a pivotal figure in our midfield.
Particularly under Unai Emery, he improved and developed his game significantly, playing an integral role for the Villa boss in implementing his preferred style of play and brand of football with his ability to control possession and tempo.
Unfortunately though, his time with us is now over, and while the expectation is that Enzo Barrenechea will arrive from Juventus imminently, the 23-year-old isn’t a like-for-like replacement, but he will likely add much-needed competition and depth in midfield.
Emery, Monchi and the Villa recruitment team must now identify and sign a midfielder capable of filling those shoes and taking us to the next level, as it’s absolutely fundamental for the Basque coach to have that orchestrator in the middle of the pitch to help us impose our preferred game-plan and style on games.
Luiz did that brilliantly for most of last season, but the combination of losing his midfield partner Boubacar Kamara to injury as well as fatigue setting in in the latter stages of the campaign, his form dipped, and subsequently he has been seen as an expendable option that could be sacrificed in order to settle our PSR concerns.
Further, amid murmurs over his contract situation with his current deal running until 2026, this was perhaps the best time for Villa to cash in and address any financial issues as best as possible.
We will certainly miss his presence in the side though and it’s a real shame to lose a player who has been so important for us in recent years, but there is faith in what Villa are doing in the bigger picture to make us more competitive in the long-term future, but it will only prove to be smart business if we bring in a replacement capable of taking us to the next level.
There is a sense that perhaps Villa have made the decision to sell Luiz with a transfer target or two already in mind to replace him as that profile of player is arguably more replaceable than others, but either way, whoever it is, they must be able to replicate what the Brazilian midfielder provided for us, but also build on that and be an even bigger influence in our success.
Whether it was his technical ability, passing range, creativity or eye for goal, Luiz was a key cog in how this Villa side has operated over the past five years, and even more so under Emery’s guidance, and having helped us break into the Champions League, it’s a real feeling of frustration and disappointment that he’s moved on at this particularly time too.
Nevertheless, Villa will move on and hopefully be better off from the move in the long run, as Emery and Co. will undoubtedly have planned for it, and will be well placed to now attack the market and hopefully bring in an upgrade to continue to improve us.
